41 minutes, 54 seconds

Dead Man's Hill
Dog Burial

Is it just me, or does it seem like Dead Man's Hill puts out a new release every few weeks? Counting side projects and collaborations, they've issued nine discs over the past three years. That's staggering. Even Steve Roach would have a hard time matching that kind of pace. Perhaps even more so than some of DMH's other releases, Dog Burial strikes me as a dirtier, more low-fi imitation of the bombastic sound of In Slaughter Natives. Not a bad thing in and of itself, but DMH risks suffering by comparison.

Can it really be the end of July already? Summer is moving way too quickly.

Also today:

41:54 Dither, Tubetech
41:54 Vond, Selvmord
41:52 Dominion, Rescue Mission
41:51 Stoa, Zal
41:50 To Avoid, Voyage into the Past!
41:49 Robin Guthrie, Continental
41:45 Sombre Printemps, Ambient & Film Music
41:42 Love Is Colder Than Death, Mental Traveller
41:42 Pimentola, Misantropolis
41:41 Evil's Toy, Angels Only!
41:41 Garmarna, Hildegard von Bingen

42 minutes, 24 seconds

Skinny Puppy
Cleanse Fold and Manipulate

Interesting article in yesterday's New York Times Magazine about something called the Buddha Machine, a small, inexpensive device that plays nine digitally encoded random loops of ambient music. Created by musicians Christiaan Virant and Zhang Jian and distributed by the Dutch experimental label Staalplaat, the Buddha Machine has only an on-off switch. Which basically means you don't have much control over what to listen to next.

I was interested in the article because I think in many ways that's what I've been trying to do with my own collection of CDs over the past decade-plus of listening to music in descending order of total time. It's essentially a randomization method, one that eliminates the issue of choice from the music-listening equation.

But the article rang a false note when it tried to call the Buddha Machine "the anti-iPod." It described "the relief of not having to make a choice in a world awash with entertainment and self-expression options." Uh, well, you can do that with an iPod too--it's called shuffle mode.

Still, nice (and weird) to see the Times Magazine give coverage to something like this and name-check Staalplaat. Worlds are colliding!

Also today:

42:24 Stormfågel, Den Nalkande Stormen
42:23 Single Gun Theory, Like Stars in My Hands
42:19 Laibach, Let It Be
42:17 Stoa, Urthona
42:16 Die Form, Corpus Delicti
42:16 The Sundays, Static & Silence
42:15 Death in June & Les Joyaux de la Princesse, Ostenbräun
42:05 E-Craft, DOS_Unit
New arrival! 65:26 Post Crash High, The Apocalypse Came Yesterday, and No One Noticed
42:01 The Moon and the Nightspirit, Regö Rejtem
41:59 Collection d'Arnell-Andréa, Au Val des Roses
41:58 Harold Budd, The White Arcades
41:57 Anchorage, The Bleak Wooden Tower
41:56 Strength Through Joy, The Force of Truth and Lies

42 minutes, 31 seconds

Khvarena
The Spirit Rises

Can you apply the term "supergroup" to a collaboration of goth-ethno artists? And if you can, can you call it "gothno"? Why not? Let's call Khvarena, then, a gothno supergroup composed of members of Rajna and GOR. And the music is very similar to Rajna's, with GOR's Francesco Banchini taking over lead vocals on a few of the tracks. It's a soothing, pretty mix of Middle Eastern melodies and rhythms underpinning ethereal singing.

This wouldn't be the first time members of Rajna have gone off to join a side project that sounds...very much like Rajna. Am'Ganesha'n, a collaboration between an ex-Rajna musician and Les Secrets de Morphée, also traffics in a similar Middle East-by-way-of-Western-Europe sound.

It's a nice release for Projekt, especially given that it's an American label, which makes The Spirit Rises more easily available to the domestic market. And cheaper too, for which I'm always grateful. Because the weakness of the dollar, coupled with my weakness for European underground music, has produced weakness in my bank account.

Also today:

42:30 Cerebral Apoplexy, Cold Heart
42:29 Toroidh, The Final Testament
42:27 Ah Cama-Sotz, Murder Themes
42:27 Lycia, Empty Space
42:26 The Glimmer Room, Grey Mirrors
42:26 Hedningarna, Hedningarna
42:25 Clan of Xymox, Medusa
42:25 Various artists, Lonely Is an Eyesore

42 minutes, 42 seconds

Monolith
Talisman

I've already posted on this topic before, but a quick look at the keyword-search data for this blog makes it worth repeating: I know other music blogs seem to exist for the sole purpose of hosting large music files and allowing people to download them, but this isn't one of them! So all you cheapskates looking for free music--wait, let me rephrase that: All you thieves looking to cheat artists out of the money they deserve for their creativity, please go elsewhere. You won't find free music (or a fellow-traveler with a sympathetic ear) here.

And really, Artesia's Chants d'Automne? That's the album you're looking to rip off? Come on. These guys are on a small label. Would it kill you to spend a few bucks to buy their CD or find a legal download? Go grab a BitTorrent of Britney Spears and leave the indies alone.

Also today:

42:40 Nature and Organisation, Beauty Reaps the Blood of Solitude
42:40 Storm of Capricorn & Paranoia Inducta, Jama
42:39 Death in June, Burial
42:35 Terrace of Memories, Terrace of Memories
42:34 Horologium, Le Cartoline Perse

43 minutes

Phragments
Homo Homini Lvpvs

Not to be confused with Les Chasseurs de la Nuit's Homo Homini Lupus, although both are Latin for "Man is a wolf to man." And like Les Chassuers, Phragments creates, appropriately enough given the title of the album, downer martial-ambient compositions: We are a violent species, and here's our theme music. There's an increasing amount of this kind of music being made, mostly in Europe, and it begs the question of how large an audience there is for it.

On the one hand, artists are businesspeople too. They wouldn't keep making it if there wasn't enough interest. On the other hand, I always crack a bit of a smile when I see artists advertise their new releases as "Limited to 1,000 copies!" I mean, really. Are there 1,000 people in the world interested in your obscure, difficult music?

I'm being unkind. And I really don't know what I'm talking about. For all I know, this is a smart business decision designed to inject scarcity into the market and create a name for your musical project. Not unlike art photographers who issue only six prints of a given work.

But somehow I have to believe that Phragments, Les Chasseurs, or any other band working in this way-below-the-radar genre would love to sell as many copies of their CDs as they possibly can, and then print thousands more and sell those too. Why else are they on MySpace?

Also today:

42:56 Harold Budd & Brian Eno, The Pearl
42:55 Cataclyst, Monuments of a Rubicund Age
42:55 Death in June, The Wall of Sacrifice
42:54 Jóhann Jóhannsson, IBM 1401, a User's Manual
42:53 End of Orgy, Still Life
42:49 Advanced Art, Product
42:48 Cocteau Twins, Milk & Kisses
42:48 The Triple Tree, The Turning Wheel
42:47 Photophob, About the Living Things
42:44 Dead Man's Hill, Esoterica Orde de Dagon
42:43 Seven Trees, Embracing the Unknown
42:42 Amduscia, Dead or Alive
42:42 Intermix, Intermix

43 minutes, 5 seconds

Tribe of Circle
Rien ne Disparait Jamais Vraiment...

Over the past week or so, it's felt as if I'm getting through CDs faster. That makes sense--after all, the CDs are getting shorter. But sometimes the shift is so subtle, it's hard to really sense it. Can you "feel" the difference between 62:39 and 62:06? I can't. But getting down around the 43-minute mark changes that, and now I feel like I can see the end. It's a matter of another month or two, I think.

Which makes me both happy and sad. Happy because it means I get to start over again (unless I truly have managed to exorcise the obsessive-compulsive demons) and sad because it signals the end of something, which is always sort of sad. I haven't decided whether I want to continue this blog once I've run through the entire CD collection, or if I do, what format it will take and whether I'll continue to write about music or choose another topic.

I do know that I've become addicted to listing out what I listen to each day. There's something satisfying about that--maybe it's a way of cataloging an accomplishment, even (especially?) on those days when I accomplish little else.

Also today:

43:04 Atrium Carceri, Cellblock
43:04 Parzival, Blut und Jordan
43:02 Morrissey, Maladjusted
43:02 Suicide Commando, Contamination
New arrival! 73:02 The Pain Machinery, Chaos Transmissions

43 minutes, 24 seconds

Ulrich Schnauss
Far Away Trains Passing By (CD 1 of 2)

In the early '90s, I suppose this would have been called "chill-out" music. But that term always rubbed me the wrong way--it was a way of describing the music not for what it is (ambient) but rather for what it isn't (thumping dance music). In other words, it was what you listened to to take a break from techno.

Well, phooey. I always preferred the "chill-out" stuff to the stuff you were supposed to work up a sweat dancing to anyway. Hence an affinity to Ulrich Schnauss and his ethereal doodlings. This particular album has a bit of a Robin Guthrie vibe, if the dreamy guitars were being filtered through Photophob's spacey, computer-driven musical sensibility. Schnauss is getting a good deal of press these days for his new album, Goodbye, which adds vocals to the mix, but I prefer the older material here. It's starker and more mysterious.

I also like saying the name "Schnauss."

Also today:

43:21 Fin de Siècle, Sans Titre
43:20 Blixa Bargeld, Commissioned Music
43:19 Caul, Apophasis
43:19 Dark Ages, Twilight of Europe
43:17 Abnocto, Simon Magus
43:17 Dead Man's Hill, The Demons of Death
43:17 Mediæval Bæbes, Salva Nos
New arrival! 65:28 Herwig Holzmann, How to Stop...
43:16 Monolith, Compressed Form
43:16 Tony Wakeford, Into the Woods
43:15 Skinny Puppy, The Process
43:15 Stalingrad, Court-Martial
43:12 In the Nursery, Groundloop
43:10 Stiff Miners, Vox Celesta
43:07 Robin Guthrie & Harold Budd, Before the Day Breaks

43 minutes, 45 seconds

Forseti
Windzeit

There's a lot of bad neofolk out there. That is to say, lots of guys with acoustic guitars and tympani and weak, shaky voices who think they can simply look the part and draw an audience. The sad thing is, they're right half the time. That's what makes Forseti such a breath of fresh air. Soaring above the usual dreck, Andreas Ritter and company craft songs that demand your attention. Moving effortlessly between softer, more pensive moods and somewhat more energetic bursts, Ritter keeps his vocals (entirely in German) on a cool, even keel, not unlike Death in June's Douglas Pearce--who makes an appearance here on the eerie final track.

It's a transfixing set of songs, and I get completely engrossed in it every time I hear it. The high point for me is likely "Sturmgeweiht," particularly when Ritter's accordion kicks in. It's a sound soaked in nostalgia, evoking such a strange sense of wistfulness. The funny thing is, with everything in German, I have no idea what he's singing about. Someday maybe I'll find out, but for now it doesn't seem to matter. I guess I could say that about a good chunk of the music I listen to.

Also today:

43:45 Stormfågel, Ett Berg av Fasa
43:44 Cranes, Particles & Waves
43:44 Digital Poodle, Combat!
43:43 Der Blutharsch, When Did Wonderland End?
43:39 E-Craft, Die Stahl AG
43:38 Tumor, Killer Tekkkno
43:34 Anna Gardeck, Bondage Women
43:32 Cold Fusion, ORP Orzeł (CD 1 of 2)
43:32 Dive, Concrete Jungle
43:30 Greg Ellis, Kala Rupa
43:30 Image Transmission, Regurgitation
43:29 Antigen Shift, Next to Departed
43:28 Brian Eno, More Music for Films
43:25 Amateur God, Near Life Experience

43 minutes, 53 seconds

Sol Invictus
Trees in Winter

Probably the first good Sol Invictus album. Sol Veritas Lux was marginally OK for a debut, but Lex Talionis was pretty awful. So what changed with Trees in Winter? Well, for one thing, the songwriting is a lot more accomplished, both lyrically and with regard to the arrangements and the breadth of instrumentation. But if I had to pick one thing that makes the most significant impact on this album, it's Joolie Wood's violin.

You may know Wood from her appearance on several Current 93 albums; she's also worked with a lot of other bands in the onetime World Serpent stable. Her plaintive and sad yet strangely uplifting contributions to the songs she plays on seem to elevate a mere folk song to something elegiac. Here, you can hear it to best effect on the songs "Here We Stand" and "Deceit."

She's released some solo material recently, which I haven't yet had the chance to hear much of. So much new music, so little shelf space...

Also today:

43:52 Cranes, EP Collection, Vol. 1
43:52 Wappenbund, Zeitenwende
43:51 Radio Kuolema, 10050 Cielo Drive
43:51 Thirteenth Exile, Assorted Chaos and Broken Machinery
43:50 God Module, Let's Go Dark
43:49 Beefcake, Hôte
New arrival! 57:20 Berkana, Lichtrad
New arrival! 55:22 Am'Ganesha'n, Estolia
New arrival! 47:34 Crackletone, Journey to the Sea of Sparks
43:47 Data-Bank-A, Salad Days
43:47 L'Effet C'est Moi, Tomber en Héros
43:47 Photophob, Music for Spaceports

44 minutes, 1 second

Siechtum
Kreuz:X:Feuer

One of the handy things about listening to your music collection in some sort of predetermined order is that it removes the entire issue of "What am I in the mood to listen to today?" So never mind that it's the dead of summer--if autumnal music is next on the list, that's what you're listening to. And I have to admit, something north of 70% of my collection could be characterized as autumnal, if not downright wintry. So what's on the stereo and what's going on weather-wise is usually a jarring juxtaposition at least half the year.

It's been gloomy and rainy in Seattle all week, though (uncharacteristically for July), so for now the likes of Tony Wakeford sound about right. Ask me again next week when it's 79 degrees out and I'm blasting Autopsia in the house.

Also today:

44:01 Tony Wakeford & Steven Stapleton, Revenge of the Selfish Shellfish
44:00 Dive, Grinding Walls
43:57 Wappenbund, Schlacht

44 minutes, 6 seconds

Soma
Stygian Vistas

Yay, the new Harry Potter book is finally out! Now will everyone just shut the hell up about it already? See, those of us who haven't read any of the books, seen any of the movies, bought any dumb-ass wizard hats--and just generally don't give a shit about Harry Potter--don't want to hear about it anymore. We're adults who don't read children's books or dress up in funny glasses to look like our favorite children's book characters.

Nor do we want to hear about how the Harry Potter books have rekindled kids' interest in reading, because that's apparently bullshit, according to this article.

So take your book--the one you waited in line to buy for six hours last night--go home, and don't emerge from under the covers until you've read it eight times by flashlight. Then have a good cry because Harry died or got paralyzed in a magic accident or OD'd on meth or whatever, and, when you're ready, rejoin the rest of the world. But when you do, don't start talking to us about the books or the movies, assuming we've read or seen them. We haven't. And we don't want to.

Harumph.

Also today:

44:04 Absurd Minds, Damn the Lie
New arrival! 53:59 Aaron Spectre, Lost Tracks
44:04 Sol Invictus, In the Rain
44:02 Artefactum, Chaos Elements
44:02 Les Joyaux de la Princesse, Chantez Jeunesse

44 minutes, 18 seconds

Consequence
Volition

Sometimes I think at least a quarter of the CDs in my collection consists of fading monuments to bands long since forgotten, even by fans of industrial and related musics. The artists were obscure when they released their CDs, and time (and the likely death of the band) hasn't helped their popularity or critical acclaim. Consequence is one of those bands, although I was pleasantly surprised to see that their Web site appears to still be active. In fact, I wrote to them to find out whether their other releases are still available for purchase.

If there were an industrial version of VH1, they'd produce a "Where Are They Now?" show and try to find bands like Construggle Test, Absent Minded, ECM, Pygmy Children, and dozens of others. Come to think of it, that's not a bad idea for a blog...

Also today:

44:16 Suiciety, Century of Brutality
44:15 Cranes, Wings of Joy
44:15 Grendel, Prescription: Medicide
44:14 Hyperdex-1-Sect, Metachrome
New arrival! 46:58 Radio Kuolema, Symphony No. 2, Op. 29
44:14 Wappenbund, Heimatflamme
44:11 Arcana, ...The Last Embrace
44:11 Ohgr, Welt
44:11 Predella Avant, Predella Avant
44:10 Calva y Nada, Schlaf
44:10 Lunascape, Mindstalking
44:09 Gaë Bolg and the Church of Fand, John Barleycorn Must Die

44 minutes, 26 seconds

Tony Wakeford
Cupid & Death

Not sure what makes this a Tony Wakeford album instead of a Sol Invictus one, since many of the same people are involved with the recording. But Tony's the boss, so I guess he gets to call the shots. And regardless of whose name is on the cover, Cupid & Death features one of the strongest series of songs Wakeford has ever put together. I particularly like the ominous "Cupid & Death I," with Karl Blake adding his enigmatic vocal talents. And though it very nearly strains Wakeford's shaky voice, "A Rose in Hell" is a classic.

The theme of Love vs. Death that weaves throughout the disc is brought together beautifully, not least by means of the brilliant artwork of Andrew King and Tor Lundvall that fills the CD jacket.

It may not be a Sol Invictus album, but it's an essential part of their discography nonetheless.

Also today:

44:26 Za Frûmi, Legends, Act 2: Vampires
44:25 Love Is Colder Than Death, Atopos
44:24 Za Frûmi, Legends, Act 1
44:23 Sol Invictus, The Killing Tide
44:21 Aesthetic Perfection, Close to Human
44:19 Arditi, Marching On to Victory
44:19 This Mortal Coil, It'll End in Tears
New arrival! 50:30 Digital Factor, De Facto
44:19 yelworC, Eclosion

44 minutes, 42 seconds

Heid
Arktogäa

A few years ago, a friend was over for dinner, and afterward he was poking around my CD collection. "I don't recognize any of these band names," he remarked. I wasn't surprised, although I take no pride in liking the music I listen to simply because it's obscure.

"Does anyone else you know listen to this stuff?" he asked.

"No, not really," I replied.

He thought for a moment. "So you can't really share this music with anyone."

Now it was my turn to think. "I guess not, no."

"I mean, I can listen to music that I like and share that experience with Chris," he continued, referring to a mutual friend of ours with whom he went to high school.

"Yeah, I see what you're saying," I replied. "And you're right--this is a private hobby of mine, in many ways."

I've been thinking about that conversation lately. And wondering whether this blog is in some ways a response to it. Yes, it's a private hobby, but maybe by blogging about it (granted, more or less in anonymity) I'm making it a little less private. That was supposed to be the genius of the Internet, right? Being able to build community regardless of geography.

Not sure how many others out there listen to, say, Heid or Cold Fusion in private like I do, but I suspect I'm not alone.

Also today:

44:41 Cold Fusion, Simmetria
44:40 Autopsia, The Silence of the Lamb
44:35 Cruciform Injection, Biomechanical Disintegration
44:34 Cranes, Forever (CD 1 of 2)
44:33 Any Questions?, Mutation
44:33 Fake, Los Angeles Synthetic
44:32 Dead Man's Hill, Descend au Tombeau
44:32 Nest, Woodsmoke
44:29 L'Orchestre Noir, Eleven (CD 2 of 2)
44:28 Cold Fusion, Occupatria
44:28 Love Is Colder Than Death, Teignmouth
44:27 Aurora, The Land of Harm and Appletrees
44:27 Feindflug, Sterbehilfe

44 minutes, 49 seconds

Jansen Spilles
Speedwingslowthings

Jansen Spilles is Jürgen Jansen and Peter Spilles, two of the dudes from Germany's industrial juggernaut Project Pitchfork. Aside from Aurora Sutra (if you even want to count that band, fronted by Spilles's former girlfriend Patricia Nigiani), Jansen Spilles is, I believe, the only Project Pitchfork side project ever undertaken. Unusual for a band with that kind of longevity, but I'm not complaining. Side projects have become like remix albums--there are just too damn many of them.

Anyway, this album for the most part inhabits a calm, soundtrackish, neoclassical vibe. No lyrics, which means Spilles doesn't get to vent his gravelly pipes. There are some odd moments, such as the sample (from a movie?) of a woman telling someone how he's "the lowest slime on earth" and how he'd "screw his own grandmother and sell tickets to it." Oka-a-ay.

Are we just exporting the crappiest movies we can find to the German market?

Also today:

44:49 Necrotek, Satanik
44:46 Horologium, The Fire Sermon
44:44 Der Blutharsch, The Track of the Hunted
44:44 Grabesmond, Xenoglossie
44:42 Cryo, Cryogenic

45 minutes, 4 seconds

Evil's Toy
Illusion

I'm not generally a scold when it comes to people downloading music off the Inernet. Sure, I think it's stealing, and I don't do it myself, but I'm not going to rat on you if that's your thing. However, while I think the major labels and their bloated arena-pop acts sort of deserve it (it's poetic justice for their ravenous profiteering and contempt for their customers all these years), I don't like to see it happen to indie labels or struggling artists.

So it's with some dismay that when I check visitor data for this blog, I'm seeing more and more frequent keyword searches pop up with the artist's or band's name followed by the word "torrent." As in BitTorrent, the peer-to-peer file-sharing service. As in, "Where can I find a bunch of music and not have to pay the artists for it?"

Leaving aside for a moment why these people are finding my blog in their search results, I find it interesting to see what they're looking for: "the sundays blind torrent," for example. I mean, come on. Aren't Sundays fans supposed to be gentle souls? I have trouble imagining them as criminals. Yes, the Sundays were on a major label, but jeez, they were a modest band who wrote thoughtful songs. Cut 'em a break and go buy their CDs or pay for the download on iTunes.

Also today:

45:04 Rukkanor, Despartica
45:04 Various artists, Triumvire
45:03 Current 93 & Nurse with Wound, Bright Yellow Moon
45:02 Photophob, Tantalus
45:01 La Floa Maldita, L'Oasis
45:00 Artefactum, Rosarium Hermeticum
45:00 Data-Bank-A, Language Barrier
44:59 Breathe, The Laughing Dolls
44:59 Dominion, Manhunt
44:59 Front Line Assembly, Gashed Senses & Crossfire
44:58 Einstürzende Neubauten, Ende Neu
44:57 Foresta di Ferro, Bury Me Standing
44:50 Grendel, Soilbleed Redux
44:50 Prager Handgriff, Fossile Brennstoffe
44:50 Sephiroth, Cathedron
44:49 Agonoize, 999 (CD 2 of 2)

45 minutes, 8 seconds

Robin Guthrie & Harold Budd
Mysterious Skin

Is it unusual to own the soundtrack to a movie you've never seen? Guilty. I'll take it even a step further: I've never even seen any films by Gregg Araki, who directed Mysterious Skin. He was branded some kind of wünderkind back in the '90s for some of his movies (Totally Fucked Up, The Living End, etc.), but apparently I couldn't be bothered to schlep to the theater (or the video store, for that matter) to see them.

Oh, well. There's always the music. And put former Cocteau Twins guitarist Robin Guthrie together with ambient maestro Harold Budd, and I'm powerless to resist. I'm hoping Araki makes more movies. Not so I can see them. Just so I can buy the soundtracks.

Also today:

45:08 Steven Stapleton & David Tibet, Musical Pumpkin Cottage
45:07 Garmarna, Vengeance
45:06 Current 93, Dogs Blood Rising
45:06 Front Line Assembly, Tactical Neural Implant

45 minutes, 19 seconds

Prager Handgriff
Schlagende Wetter

When I try to describe to friends the music I tend to like, it inevitably gets interpreted as "German techno." As in, "Oh, heard any good German techno lately?" Or "Hey, you like German techno. Have you heard that song by blah blah blah..." It's a catch-all phrase that allows them to categorize a range of genres and subgenres neatly, never mind that it's about as accurate as calling someone a country-music fan because he listens to Bob Dylan.

However, when I listen to Prager Handgriff, I sometimes think, Yeah, this is probably what they imagine I listen to. It fits their stereotype--stiff, pounding rhythms; deep, gruff vocals; everything done with machines. Hell, it fits my stereotype of EBM or "German techno" or whatever else you want to call it.

And it always makes me think of Dieter.



Also today:

45:18 Dernière Volonté, Commémoration (CD 2 of 2)
45:17 Algiz, Claire-Voie
45:14 Artesia, Chants d'Automne
45:12 Julia Kent, Delay
45:11 Tamtrum, Elektronic Blakc Mess (CD 2 of 2)
45:09 Moon Far Away, Lado World

45 minutes, 30 seconds

Proceed
Fehlgesteuert

Will there always be an audience for EBM? Intellectually, I know that musical genres--any and all of them--tend to stick around and never disappear. There's always a cluster of fans that carry a torch for, say, Dixieland jazz or classic blues. But those are pretty much moribund forms of music--not much new or innovative going on in Dixieland jazz. It's more of a museum exhibit than a living, breathing form of expression anymore.

I wonder whether EBM is already at that stage. It's been around for more than 20 years by now, and--not to pick on Proceed, per se--the new EBM being released is pretty much a retro phenomenon. More often than not, it's consciously produced to sound like the EBM we grew up with: Front 242, Leæther Strip, Prager Handgriff, etc. Is this evidence of a still-thriving genre? Or the death throes of something that never really had much of a shelf life to begin with?

I don't have an answer. And I think you could probably apply this same question to just about any form of modern music. It's an extraordinary challenge for the artist to create something truly original. Often the demands of commerce force musicians to produce music that's less challenging and instead more evocative of something that's already proven to be successful. EBM is what fills the dance floors, packs the clubs, and hence sells alcohol, so there's a constant demand for new material that doesn't stray too far from the good old stuff. This isn't necessarily a bad thing, but I wonder if it sustains a genre long past its due date.

Then again, does anyone really care? As George Sarah put it memorably in an old Stereotaxic Device song, "Dance, motherfuckers, dance."

Also today:

45:29 Psyclon Nine, Divine Infekt
45:29 Seven Pines, Histoire de l'Ours
45:27 The Joy of Nature and Discipline, The Fog That Life Is Haunted By
45:27 Nexus 8, Neurotransmisor
45:27 Photophob, Your Majesty Machine
45:27 Various artists, Prager Kodex: Songs of Three Brotherhoods
45:26 Love Is Colder Than Death, Eclipse
45:25 Garmarna, God's Musicians
45:22 The Protagonist, Songs of Experience

45 minutes, 40 seconds

Rumskib
Rumskib

Rumskib--sounds like a drink pirates used to enjoy below decks, doesn't it? In fact, it's Danish for pretty, dreamy, shoegazer-y pop music. No, not really. I haven't the foggiest idea what the name means, but the music does indeed shiver me timbers. It's not unlike some of the pretty, dreamy, shoegazer-y pop music that used to pop-ulate (sorry) the old Hyperium label's catalog (Mellonta Tauta, Sleeping Dogs Wake, etc.). The vocalist, Tine Louise Kortermand, has a classic ethereal voice--a little bit of Cocteau Twins' Liz Fraser, a touch of Lush's Miki Berenyi, a dash of Björk--which makes a nice contrast with the distorted guitars.

It's good stuff. Wouldn't mind hearing more.

Also today:

45:39 Allerseelen & Sangre Cavallum, Barco do Vinho
45:37 Einstürzende Neubauten, Tabula Rasa (CD 1 of 2)
45:37 The Smiths, The Smiths
45:36 In the Nursery, Praxis
45:34 Love Spirals Downwards, Ever
45:34 Tearwave, Tearwave
45:33 Evil's Toy, Human Refuse
New arrival! 53:42 Stalnoy Pakt, Russia's Awakening
45:30 Cocteau Twins, Lullabies to Violaine (CD 3 of 4)